Method of making artificial stone



Jan. 19, 1925. 1,570,538

J. THOMAS METHOD OF MAKING ARTIFICIAL STONE Filed March 24 1925 INVENTOR. JAMEs THoM 5 A TTORNE Y.

Patented 19,1926.

UNITED STATES JAMES THOMAS, OF HONTRd SE, GALIFOBNI A.

METHOD OF MAKING STONE.

7 Application manna 24, 1925. Serial m. 17,922.

'1'oallwhomitmaflcomem:

Be it known that I, JAMns THOMAS, a

'citizen of the United States, residing at Montrose, in the'county of Los Angeles and State of California, have mvented new and useful Improvements in Methods of Artificial Stone, of WhlCh the following 1s a s ecification.

his invention relates to the formatlon of artificial stone, and refers more s ecifically to a process for accurately simu atmgthe veining, formation, and other characteristics possessed b natural stone.

In some uilding structures the walls and wainscoting are often formed of .natural stone, such as marbles, in blocks or slabs, for producing ornamental eflfects. Some natural stone such as travertine (volcanic rock or lavas is now frequently employed for such urposes, as its aining an other natural c aracteristics w en fimshed, pro duce beautiful artistic efi'ects. this rock is only formed in certain volcamc countries, the cost of transportation and custom duties render its use highly expensive, and mthe case of inexpensive building structures its use is prohibitive. I

By employing my improved process I am enabled to produce an accurate simulation of the above mentioned rock, or stone, in

both color, texture, veining, and other characteristics so that the same cannot be readily detected from the natural stone exce t possibly by experts, and at a fraction 0 the cost.

The drawin hereto attached and. forming a part of t is specification represent the various steps employed in the process of forming the artificial stone.

Fig. 1 is a pers ective view of a mold form employed in t e process.

'Fig. 2 is a cross section through the mold form illustrating the formation of the va -rious cementitious layers of material.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged section of a portion of a mold form showing two bottom layers of material and illustrating the formation of the same.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a slab of artificial stone sawed from a block of cast stone, the dotted lines indicating the .complete block.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, 5 des1 nates a mold form referably of rectan ar configuration, an of a size sufliciently large to enable the manufacturers to cast a block that may be readily cut or sawed into slabs suitable for commercial use.

In preparing the composition stone, I preferably employ a sum cement commercially known as @en'es cement, in

the proportion of two (2) parts of cement to one (1) part of water in order to produce a heavy thick viscous mixture, similar to a very heavy lubricating oil, introducing into the mixture a suitable amount of coloring matter, such as lamp black, raw

umber, raw sienna, or ochre, to simulate the color of the natural travertine stone. It will be understood that by varying the proportions of cement and water the porosity 'of the finished blocks of stone will be increased or diminished as desired.

After the mixture of the desired consistenc has been formed, a layer 6 is poure into the-mold form 5, the air entrained therein will cause a large number of concavities 7 to form in the mass, some of the concavities being of considerable size. Before the cementitious mixture has set a small quantity of dry cement 8 colored as desired, is dusted or laid in thin masses on the upper surface of the mass to produce the streaked or strata efl'ect found in the natural stone. To further increase the simulation of the artificial stone, small lumps 9 of the cement partially wet are deposited on the surface of the mass. Succeeding layers 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14, are deposited one on top of the other in substantially the same manner as the first layer, and as the thickness of each layer is irregular, the dry cement sprinkled on the upper surface will when the entire mass has set, form the various stratas that appear in the natural stone.

When the cast block has become sufliciently hard the same is removed from the mold form, and sawed into slabs 15 of different thicknesses, the surfaces ,of the sawed slabs simulating the appearance of sawed slabs of natural stone with remarkable fidelity.

What I claim is:

1. The herein described method of forming artificial stone, which consists in forming a cementitious mixture of semi-fluid consistency and pouring the same into a mold form in a plurality of layers, and depositing a small quantity of dry material on the surface of each layer to form stratified veins in the mass when the same is hardened.

2. The herein described process of form-- ing artificial stone, which consists of mixing a gypsum cement with water to form a thick slow pouring mixture, depositing the same in superimposed irregular layers in a mold form, the top of each layer being sprinkled with a dry material to orm veins in the mass, and finally sawing the cast mass into slabs after the same has hardened. v 3. The herein described process offorming an artificial stone, which consists in mix- 1 mineral substance to form stratified veins in themass when hardened, and finally sawing the hardened block transversely with respect to the stratified veins to form slabs.

In witness that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto subscribed my name this 28th u day of February, 1925. V I

JAMES THOMAS. 

